Pep Guardiola has said Manuel Akanji is in line to start for Manchester City when they play against Sevilla in the UEFA Champions League following the defender’s arrival from Borussia Dortmund last week.
Speaking to the press via the Manchester Evening News ahead of Tuesday’s clash in Andalusia, the Catalan coach revealed that Akanji is in contention to make his City debut after the defender moved to Manchester on deadline day in a deal worth £15m.
Akanji was not involved in Saturday’s 1-1 draw against Aston Villa with the centre-back away for family reasons, yet the defender is now set to be involved for the Manchester giants this week when City kick off their Champions League campaign against Spanish side Sevilla.
After crashing out of the semi-final stage last season in dramatic fashion to eventual winners Real Madrid, City will be looking to go all the way this year in Europe with the Champions League the last piece of silverware Guardiola is yet to add to his collection as manager of the Manchester side.
And signing the likes of Akanji will work wonders for Guardiola, with the Swiss star labelled by the Atheltic as a ‘titan’ of a centre-back who will provide City with a lot of quality depth for the likes of Ruben Dias and Aymeric Lapote, with the Premier League boss saying the former Dortmund star is ready to go.
Guardiola said when asked about Akanji’s prospects of featuring against Sevilla: “He feels good. He could not be here because he had a baby so congratulations to him and his wife and family, but he’s ready, he came back really well from Dortmund.”
Sevilla are perfect opponents for Akanji to make his Manchester City debut
Akanji’s move to City caught many by surprise, but given the defender’s quality and the experience the former Bundesliga centre-back offers, it makes sense why Guardiola authorised such a move, and Sevilla are the perfect opponents for the 27-year-old to make his bow for the Manchester side.
Indeed, Sevilla have been poor this season with the La Liga giants currently sat in 16th place in the league standings, and for Akanji, even with the tie taking place in Spain, the defender has an ideal rival to make his City debut against.
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